The Terraced Fields of the Hani People in Yuanyang
3 min readYuanyang County is located on the south bank of the honghe river in southern Yunnan There are no level areas the topography is all tall mountains cut by deep valleys.The terraced fields and sea of clouds form a majestic and beautiful scene and its unique character has led people to call them”the heavenly terraced fields of yuanyang. Over 360，000 mu of terraced fields are distributed across the mountain slopes in a vast and daunting array of color that fills the scene in all directions.Yuanyang is rich in tourist venues and is the core area of the honghe river hani terraced fields now pending recognition as a world heritage site.
The hani people first moved into the area at the end of the sui and beginning of the Tang dynasties.They started converting wasteland by terracing fields to form rice paddies In the 12 plus centuries since then，generations of the hani have toiled and used their surprising wisdom and willpower to carve out thousands of terraced fields from the wasteland on the surrounding mountain sides.On the larger mountains they carved out hundreds of water canals and dry channels.The canals and dry channels look like silver belts tightly wrapped around the mountains.They collect the many large and small streams of water flowing down the mountain and resolve the crucial problem of watering the field The fields of Yuanyang are irrigated by streams that flow down from the top of the mountain all year long.The local people made the fields according to the topography and geology of the plot so that the many tiers of fields follow the shape of the mountain and zigzag as they go up the mountain they take advantage of the fact that water flows downhill togather the continuous flow of water and direct it to the fields to form an automaticirrigation network.From top to bottom，Yuanyang is a mountainous scenic area with a perfectly balanced ecological system consisting of four phases–forests，water system，village，and fields.
The technique of converting wasteland on the slopes of areas like this with mountains of various altitudes into terraced fields began to reach China and Southeast asia in the 14th century.The Hani people went one step further by turning area of Ailao Mountain into a series of artworks.As a result，a Ming dynasty emperor called the hani”miraculous mountain sculptors and this name has been handed down to the present.
The terraced fields of Yuanyang were set up on slopes ranging from 15 to 75 degrees. It is also a combination of history and culture with nature.The rows and rows of terraced fields go up the sides of the mountain like a stairway reaching to the sky. during periods of fog, a great many of the fields are hidden from viev and the scene resembles a mysterious ladder extending from earth up into the heavens Seven different ethnic groups, the hani, Yi, Dai, Yao, Miao, Zhuang and Han reside in Yuanyang, a typical mountain area with an ethically mixed population. the brilliant mixtureof ethnic cultures, with the hani terraced field culture as most prominent feature, lends a strong ethnic culture to the area. The traditional local festivals such as the longstreet Banquet and october Festival of the hani, the torch festival of the yi and the dance flower Festival of the Miao are elegant and colorful.
The terraced fields of the hani people of yuanyang are the product of the history of the culture of rice paddy and crop cultivation, and represent the crystallization of the wisdom of ethnic minority groups through a long period of survival and development.
